Questions Commonly Asked by Interviewers

In any interview, be prepared to go into deep detail about what is contained in your resume, cover letter, transcript, references and writing sample. Anything submitted in the application process, as well as the answers you give in the course of your interview, may be discussed - especially be prepared to answer questions about your personal background, career objectives, educational background and work experience.

In addition, you should be prepared to answer variations of the standard, basic interview questions, such as those listed below:

Tell me something about yourself.

What are your strengths/weaknesses?

What has been your favorite class in law school? Why?

What has been your least favorite class in law school? Why?

What made you decide to attend law school?

Why Saint Louis University School of Law?

Where do you see yourself in 5/10/15 years?

How have you changed in the last 5 years?

What attracted you to us as an employer?

What do you know about this firm/organization?

What do you think of our web site?

Why did you apply for this position?

What areas of the law are you interested in?

Are you committed to this particular geographic area?

How would your friends/classmates describe you?

How would you describe yourself?

How would you approach this job?

What motivates you?

How do you cope without motivation?

What do you think you can bring to this position?

Tell me about your writing skills.

Describe your best writing.

Tell me about your college experience/activities.

What has been your most valuable work experience? Why?

What is your G.P.A./class rank?

What do you attribute your academic success to?

Why have you not been more successful with your grades?

What do you consider to be your greatest accomplishment?

What do you consider to be your biggest disappointment/failure?

What do you like to do in your spare time?

What things are most important to you in a job?

Why should we hire you?

What would you look forward to most in this job?

In your view, what are the major problems/opportunities facing the legal industry.

Have you ever attended a court hearing?

Are you willing to work after-hours if necessary?

What sort of advocacy experience do you have?

Tell me about your volunteer work.

Are you a social person? Tell me about your work/life balance.

Tell me about a time that you experienced failure.

Tell me about your leadership experience.

Describe a time that you had to juggle several priority projects.

Tell me about a time that you made a mistake.

Describe a situation in which you were able to use persuasion to successfully convince someone to see things your way.

Give me an example of a time you had to make a split second decision.

Tell me about a recent situation in which you had to deal with a very upset client or co-worker.

Give me an example of a time when you motivated others.

Tell me about a time when you delegated a project effectively.

Tell me about a time when you missed an obvious solution to a problem.

Describe a time when you anticipated potential problems and developed preventive measures.

Tell me about a time when you were forced to make an unpopular decision.